A local consultant on civil rights cases involving the disabled, however, says the city could violate the Americans with Disabilities Act if it forces the issue.

Glardon and her daughter, Erin Blevins, are putting up a fight. Mother and daughter are scheduled to go before the Fairfield Board of Zoning Appeals next Wednesday to try to keep all seven dogs.

Blevins, who moved in with her mother and step-father to help because they are both disabled, said she too suffers from depression and other psychological conditions. Having the dogs around helps those issues.

“They are our family. They are our kids,” Blevins said. “I’ll go to jail over this.”

Fairfield’s pet regulation dates back to at least 1984. It allows two adult dogs or cats older than four months old on a residential lot or owners must apply for a kennel license. But there’s a catch. Kennels aren’t allowed on property that is zoned residential. Violators face a fine of up to $500.

“We are starting to have an aging city. We don’t want to have a decaying city,” longtime Mayor Ron D’Epifanio said. “We need to ramp up our ordinances ... and we need to keep the pet law in force.”

Communities surrounding Fairfield allow more pets. West Chester Township allows four. Liberty Township and the city of Hamilton allow five.

Most violations stem from neighbor complaints. That’s what happened in Glardon’s case. Sara and Maddie, sibling dobermans not quite a year old, were outside barking and someone complained to the city, officials said.

Rick Helsinger, Fairfield’s building superintendent, said Glardon isn’t alone when it comes to being a pet limit scofflaw. Others who have received violations in the past complied and got rid of their pets, he said.

Wednesday’s hearing will be the first time anyone has challenged it to the board of zoning appeals, said Helsinger. And he’s glad he’s not the one to pass judgment on the issue because it’s an emotional one.

“I know how attached you can get to them. Thankfully, that’s the board of zoning appeals’ decision to make,” he said.

Glardon’s case isn’t the first time animals have created a stir for Fairfield officials.

The city tried to yank 78-year-old Joyce Branham’s five chickens away in 2006 but settled after she contacted the Ohio Civil Rights Commission, saying Fairfield discriminated against her on the basis of a handicap. A cancer survivor, Branham suffered from chronic anxiety and said having the chickens around was therapeutic.

Her trouble began when neighbors complained that the chickens devalued their properties and city council, touching off a trend in Greater Cincinnati, subsequently passed legislation banning farm animals unless they are kept on at least two acres zoned as an estate or for agriculture.

Rodney E. Jackson, a local consultant with the Department of Justice’s Office of Civil Rights, helped negotiate a settlement with Fairfield that permitted Branham to keep her chickens. She was not allowed to replace them when they died.

He said Glardon’s dogs are protected by the American with Disabilities Act.

“(Glardon and Blevins) are two people with disabilities, and provided the house is not a health hazard and that the dogs aren’t keeping everybody awake at night … I would probably say the city of Fairfield needs to go suck an egg,” Jackson said. “I would think that the mayor at this point would be smart enough to back off of people with disabilities.”

Branham still has five chickens. She still feeds them minced bologna every morning.

The ordeal with Fairfield is still fresh in her mind.

“Fairfield is trying to become the city that it’s not,” Branham said after learning about Glardon’s circumstances.

“I’d go for it. This is America. I personally think seven dogs is too many. But that’s her business and she pays her property taxes. They are not only her babies, they are part of her life.”⬛